Friday, October 21, 2011

Driver Chassis Selections for Talladega Good Sam Club 500

Note: Not all teams list their chassis selections in press releases

Jamie McMurray has been very good in plate races (Getty)

#1-Jamie McMurray: Crew Chief Kevin "Bono" Manion and the #1 Bass Pro Shops / Tracker Boats Chevy will be bringing chassis #1118 to Talladega for this weekend's Good Sam Club 500. This is a brand new chassis that has never been used before.

#2-Brad Keselowski: and the #2 Miller Lite Dodge Charger team will race chassis PRS-639 during Sunday's Good Sam Club 500 at Talladega Superspeedway. Brad Keselowski last drove this chassis to a 15th-place finish at Daytona International Speedway in July. The featured tag line on the bumper of the "Blue Deuce" this weekend at Talladega will be "In Honor Of Dan," to honor the life and legacy of IndyCar driver Dan Wheldon, who passed away last Sunday.

#5-Mark Martin: crew chief Lance McGrew has chosen Hendrick Motorsports Chassis No. 5-632 for Sunday's race at Talladega. This is the same chassis Martin has driven in all three of the restrictor-plate events held so far this season, earning two top-10 finishes, eighth, most recently, at Talladega and 10th in the season-opening Daytona 500.

#6-David Ragan: Driving the same chassis that earned him his first Sprint Cup series victory at Daytona in July, RK-691. Beginning this weekend in Talladega and running through the end of the season, UPS My Choice will be featured as the primary design on David Ragan's No. 6 UPS Ford. UPS My Choice is a game-changing new service introduced by UPS in October that dramatically increases the likelihood of a successful package delivery on the first attempt by providing package recipients delivery alerts, specific delivery time frames, reroute options, visibility tools and electronic signature release, all by accessing ups.com through a computer or mobile phone.

#9-Marcos Ambrose: The #9 RPM team has prepared chassis No. 721 for the 500-mile event at Talladega Superspeedway. This Stanley Ford Fusion was run previously this season at Daytona International Speedway in July. Australian Word of the Week: Station = A Big Farm or A Large Area of Grass for Grazing.

#14-Tony Stewart: Chassis No. 14-634 debuted during Daytona Speedweeks. It set the 10th fastest time in Daytona 500 qualifying, which slotted it fifth for the Gatorade Duel. In that race, Stewart drove Chassis No. 14-634 to a 12th-place finish, which gave him a 25th-place starting spot for the Daytona 500. It had numerous sessions in the wind tunnel between Daytona and the April 17 race at Talladega, where in its third career start, it finished 17th after starting 30th. It returned to Daytona in July for the Coke Zero 400, where it started 19th and finished 11th. The Good Sam Club 500 at Talladega will mark Chassis No. 14-634's fifth career start and last of the 2011 season.

#17-Matt Kenseth: will run primary chassis RK-779 which last run at Daytona. This weekend at Talladega, Kenseth will pilot the #17 Jeremiah Weed Ford Fusion.

#18-Kyle Busch: Chassis No. 321 is a brand new chassis that will make its debut in Sunday's Good Sam Club 500 at Talladega Superspeedway running the orange Halloween M&M's colors.

Hard to believe Busch has never won a points plate race

#22-Kurt Busch and his Steve Addington-led Penske Racing "Double-Deuce" team will be racing their "PRS-640" Shell-Pennzoil Dodge Charger this weekend in the Good Sam Club 500 at Talladega Superspeedway. This was the car that Busch debuted with an impressive victory in the season-opening Budweiser Shootout at Daytona International Speedway. Busch started 17th and paired up with Jamie McMurray to win his first Sprint Cup event on a restrictor-plate track. The team also used this car in the spring race at Talladega. Busch started eighth and was running sixth with two laps to go, but lost his drafting mate and fell to 18th at the finish. The "PRS-641" chassis will serve as the backup Dodge Charger for this weekend.

#27-Paul Menard will pilot Chassis No. 335 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stable. This is a brand new #27 Serta/Menards Chevy Impala that will turn its first laps during opening practice on Friday at Talladega.

#29-Kevin Harvick: and Jimmy John's Gourmet Sandwiches Chevy team will race chassis No. 377 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stable. It is a brand new racer that will see its first on-track activity this weekend at Talladega Superspeedway.

#31-Jeff Burton will pilot chassis No. 337 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stable in this weekend's Good Sam Club 500. Built new for the 2011 season, this #31 Caterpillar Chevy tested at Daytona International Speedway in January but will be put through its first competitive laps this weekend at Talladega. Thompson Tractor Company and Puckett Machinery will be featured on the deck lid of the #31 Caterpillar Chevrolet for Talladega Superspeedway's weekend event.

#33-Clint Bowyer: will pilot chassis No. 338 from the Richard Childress Racing NASCAR Sprint Cup Series stable. This #33 Chevy 100 Years Chevy was originally a #27 racer that has been driven three times this season by RCR teammate Paul Menard in the Daytona 500 (started-19th, finished-ninth), at Talladega Superspeedway in April (started-fifth, finished-12th) and at Daytona International Speedway in July (started-10th, finished-eighth).

#35-Geoff Bodine: will pilot the No. 19 chassis this weekend. Bodine competed at Daytona International Speedway in the Coke Zero 400 in this chassis. He started 35th and looked to have a solid day before the wheel barring broke, relegating the team to a 38th-place finish. TBR also ran the No. 19 chassis with Steve Park at Talladega Superspeedway this season. Park started 33rd before and electrical issue ended his day early.

#36-Dave Blaney will pilot the No. 27 chassis this weekend at Talladega. He most recently piloted the chassis at Daytona International Speedway for the Coke Zero 400, as well as the Daytona 500. Most notably, he drove the chassis at Talladega Superspeedway in April where he led 21 laps before a late-race spin spoiled a solid run.

#42-Juan Pablo Montoya: crew chief Jim Pohlman and the #42 Energizer team have decided to bring chassis #1117 to Talladega Superspeedway this weekend. This brand new chassis will see its first race action of the year in the Good Sam Club 500.

#43-A.J. Allmendinger: The #43 Richard Petty Motorsports team has prepared chassis No. 722 for this weekend's event at Talladega Superspeedway. This Best Buy Ford has been run previously this season at Daytona and Talladega's first event of the season.

#48-Jimmie Johnson: will drive chassis No. 628 in Sunday's restrictor-plate race. He won the April race at Talladega Superspeedway in that chassis. Johnson finished fourth in backup chassis No. 618 in February's Budweiser Shootout at Daytona International Speedway.

#88-Dale Earnhardt Jr.: Crew chief Steve Letarte and the #88 team will unload Hendrick Motorsports Chassis No. 88-629. Earnhardt has raced this chassis three times this year -- the Gatorade Duel 150, the April event at Talladega and the July race at Daytona International Speedway.

#99-Carl Edwards the #99 Subway team will be unloading chassis RK-677 this weekend at Talladega. This car raced in the Budweiser Shootout in February, Talladega in April and Daytona in July.

Joey Logano (No. 22 Pennzoil Ford)· One top five, two top 10s; one pole· Average finish of 12.3· Average Running Position of 13.8, seventh-best· Driver Rating of 87.5, 11th-best· Average Green Flag Speed of 170.111 mph, 12th-fastest